The "I"-word momentum grows

Investigative Status Report of the House Judiciay Committee Democratic Staff (PDF):

Our investigation has found that while the allegations set forth in this Report rise to the level of impeachable misconduct by the President, the Vice President, and other high ranking officials within the Administration, more information and investigatory authority is needed before recommendations can be made concerning specific Articles of Impeachment. This is due to the fact, that, among other things, the Bush Administration has largely ignored efforts by Members of Congress to obtain necessary information and documents, and the Republican Congress has failed to conduct oversight on these matters.

There is little doubt that the allegations of misconduct set forth in this Report - misleading Congress and the American public concerning the decision to go to war; misstating and manipulating the intelligence to justify a preemptive war; encouraging and countenancing torture and cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment; covering up wrongdoing and retaliating against administration critics - rise to the level of "Treason, Bribery, or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors" within the meaning of Article I, Section 2 of the Constitution.

We also found that there is at least a prima facie case that these actions by the President, Vice President and other members of the Bush Administration violate a number of federal laws, including (1) Committing a Fraud Against the United States (18 U.S.C. ' 371); (2) Making False Statements to Congress (18 U.S.C. ' 1001); (3) the
War Powers Resolution (Public Law 93-148); (4) Misuse of Government Funds (31 U.S.C. ' 1301); (5) federal laws and international treaties prohibiting torture and cruel, inhuman, and degrading treatment (including the Anti-Torture Statute, the War Crimes Act, the Geneva and Hague Conventions, the United Nations Convention Against Torture, and Cruel, Inhuman and Degrading Treatment); (6) federal laws concerning retaliating against witnesses and other individuals (including Obstructing Congress, the Whistleblower Protection Act, the Lloyd-LaFollette Act, and Retaliating against Witnesses); and (7) federal laws and regulations concerning leaking and other misuse of intelligence information (including Executive Order 12958, Gathering, Transmitting, or Losing Defense Information, and Gathering or Delivering Defense Information to Aid Foreign Government).